About this video

Names, files and addresses in this video are examples.

Video transcript

1. 00:00First and last lines

   Those two lines do most of the work in any email. Here's how to write both, and how to use them when you're after a job. Open with I hope this email finds you well, and you've spent your opening on nothing. It tells the reader no fact. It also looks like a template, and that's the moment people stop reading.

2. 00:22How to open

   The quickest fix is to delete it and start with your actual point. Saw your post about onboarding, and here's a related idea. That already beats any pleasantry. If you're writing to a stranger, mention something real and recent. A post they wrote. A company milestone. A shared connection. Details like these prove you didn't send the same note to everyone. Need a bridge? Say what the email is about. Following up on our call. Quick question about your Q2 plans. A colleague suggested I reach out. Each one answers why the reader should keep going. Match all this to the relationship. Clients and colleagues can take a direct, casual line. Cold outreach wants something warmer but still specific. Legal or executive mail stays formal, and it still needs a purpose. A short, sincere pleasantry is fine with people you know.

3. 01:14How to end

   Now the other end. Your closing should tell the reader exactly what happens next. Can we meet Thursday at 3pm? Please review the doc and reply by Friday. A vague closing gets no action. Keep it to one ask per email. A second request dilutes the first, so choose the one you care about most, and make it easy to act on. Then pick a sign-off that fits. Best or Thanks reads professional but warm. Regards or Sincerely reads formal. Cheers or Talk soon is casual. Choose one and stay consistent. Some closings work against you. Yours truly feels stiff in business mail, unless it's a formal letter. Warmly is odd in cold outreach. And ending with no sign-off at all reads as abrupt, as if you'd stopped mid-thought. Under the sign-off, keep your signature to four or five lines. Name, title, company, phone and website. Stacks of icons and legal disclaimers pull attention away from your message. Before you hit send, check the name, the attachment and any typos near the end.

4. 02:20Job applications

   A job application email is your cover letter in email form, so these habits matter even more. Make the subject line plain. Application for your job title, then your name. Vague subjects like Opportunity get skipped. Inside, go in this order. Name the role and where you saw it. Give your strongest qualification in a sentence or two. List what you've attached. Then close with Regards and your full contact details. Stay under 200 words, because recruiters skim. Tailor every one to the role, since generic applications get ignored. Send from a plain address made of your first and last name. And open the attachment list once more. A missing file is an easy mistake to make.

5. 03:05Emailing a hiring manager

   A note to the hiring manager is a different kind of email. Find the person who'd be your direct manager, rather than HR. Keep it to 4–6 sentences. Lead with one specific achievement, and end with a low-friction ask, like a 15-minute call next week. The two emails treat your CV differently. An application attaches it. A first note to a manager doesn't. You offer to send it if they're interested. You still apply through the official channel, and you mention that you did. No reply? Follow up once, after five business days.

6. 03:39Before you press send

   Then leave it. There's one more check, and good writing can't replace it. If you found that address through an email finder, it may be wrong, and finders aren't always accurate. A bounce wastes your one attempt. So verify the address first. BillionVerify checks it before you send, without emailing the person.

7. 03:58Get started free

   Then send your note. 20 free credits every day you use your account, up to 600 a month. No credit card required. Start at billionverify.com.